Be a Good Time Manager

Be a Good Time Manager  Take Time to Think


Whether you're a WAHM (Work at Home Mom) or employed outside of the home, being a good manager of your time is paramount. You want to be able to plan out your day effectively to accomplish what needs to be done. This is necessary to ensure no important details fall through the proverbial cracks.

If you work outside of the home you're probably armed with a day planner or agenda of some kind. You know when you need to be in meetings or when the best time is to make phone calls. You know when your co-workers need you the most, and when you can take your lunch break and run quick errands.

As a parent, you probably have everyone's activities and appointments marked on a calendar in a public location. This permits planning around soccer practice and orthodontist appointments. Your routine is set chores and errands. You know when is best for planning outside activities. You know when the kids get home from school and when the baby needs her nap.

If your office is in your home, time management takes on a whole new meaning. Not only do the previous tasks apply, you now need to use some time management skills to find that perfect balance between work and household tasks, caring for children, maintaining a relationship with your partner ñ and at some point in the mix you need to take care of yourself.

By considering some effective time management skills, you can have them lead you through your day. You will have the knowledge you need to keep you from forgetting children at soccer practice and showing up for a dentist appointment two hours earlier than needed. Here are some tips:

* Set a schedule - By creating a schedule you have the most important item already taken care of. Knowing in a glance what you need to accomplish is the most important thing you can do to keep track of your family while remaining as productive as possible.

* Choose office hours, and spread the word - This is a great way to prevent family and friends from wanting your time when it's not ideal for you. Let them know they are important to you, but outside of your office hours is best for you.

* Schedule your day with the kids in mind - When your children are young enough to be taking naps, this becomes your prime work period. Chores such as dishes or sweeping the floors can be done when little ones are awake. Get as much work done as possible during naptime. Learn to multitask by throwing a load of clothes in the dryer or getting supper started too.

* Schedule regular breaks and spend some time with the children - It is important not only for your children but for you as well. Go for a walk, or sit and play at the sandbox with little ones. Show them that although you work from home, they are still most important.

* Write a to-do list - Put the most urgent items at the top of the list and work down from there. The important business work will be done first, and cleaning your closet can be done another day.

Take time for yourself. You're still only one person. Life happens whether your work is done or not. Run yourself a bath, grab a good book or just sit with your husband for a bit. After all he's the one you are going to receive the most help and encouragement from, so these little gestures will let him know how much you appreciate it. 

Meetings and How to Survive Them


Meetings are an essential part of the workplace.  They are where ideas are generated, goals are set, expectations are covered, and a whole host of other things are accomplished.  But meetings can also waste a whole lot of time and leave people more confused than before the meeting started.  The answer to this problem is to streamline your meetings to ensure they are useful and productive.

While meetings can be a great way to set goals and figure out what needs to be done, they're not always necessary.  If you are in the middle of an ongoing project, having a meeting for everyone to say ìthis is what I was supposed to be doing, I'm doing itî is pretty much a waste of everyone's time.  Before you have a meeting, look at your goals and priorities and see if it's really needed.  You may be able to get by with a phone call or email to ask how everyone is doing on their goals. 

Set an agenda, make sure everyone knows it, then stick to it.  In large meetings, especially brainstorming sessions, it's easy for one person to go off on a tangent and pull everyone else along with them.  While there is a change you'll come up with a decent idea, you'll also end up wasting a lot of time.

When setting up a meeting, it's common to want to include people.  It may be that you want to expand your pool of ideas and viewpoints, or you want to include new or less utilized office members.  It could also be to include other organizations.  While this can have benefits, it can also lead to meetings that drag on and could even turn into a battleground for conflicting viewpoints.  Before you send out a reminder for a meeting, make sure everyone there is needed and will not simply be dead weight.

When planning a meeting, set a clear agenda of what needs to be covered; feel free to be very specific and detailed.  Put your agenda in writing and make sure everyone has a copy and knows what is going on.  If something comes up that isn't on the agenda, write it down and tell them that it's a good idea and will be discussed later, but right now you must stick to what's on the paper. 

The biggest time-waster at meetings is usually in the very beginning.  Often people are late or want to chat and socialize.  The best way to get rid of time-waste in a meeting is to ensure that it starts on time.  If people want to socialize, they can come early.  Also, don't wait for late people to show up.  This will help save time and encourage them to be prompt in the future. 

After the meeting, make sure everyone gets a copy of what went on at the meeting.  This ensures everyone is aware of what the goal is, and what their part is on the overall picture.  This will also help those people catch up who showed up late or couldn't make the meeting.  In addition, it is something you can use to inform people who didn't need to be included in the meeting, but need to know what is going on.

By streamlining your meetings, you can not only save time, but also increase productivity.  If everyone knows what's expected and what they're doing, they're going to be more effective workers.